 |
| Image courtesy of imagerymajestic at freedigitalphotos.net. |
My day is
filled with work, cleaning house, tending to people's needs and my
time is full. Then I read in 1
Thessalonians 5 to "pray continually" or as the King James Version
says to "pray without ceasing" and I wonder how to obey that command.
I forget
to pray sometimes. I want to pray for
people I love, regarding hardships, asking for direction, and I want to obey
Paul's instructions to us, but sometimes I just forget. Several years ago a woman in our community was
diagnosed with very aggressive breast cancer and I committed to pray for her,
but I was concerned I would forget. Then
I remembered that I drive by her home every day on my way to work. I committed that each time I drove by her
house I would pray for her. Her house
has served as a reminder to pray, when I otherwise would have forgotten. Another friend asked me to pray for a
specific situation, so I put a sticky note on my computer to remind me to pray
for that situation. Then an ambulance
passed by, and as I've made it a habit to do when I hear a siren, I prayed for
all involved the rescue workers and those in trouble. Suddenly I realized that all of these things
were reminders – simple little triggers that remind me throughout the day to
pray for things that concern me and the ones I love.
A few
years ago a friend taught me another means to help remember to pray for
someone. When someone shares a prayer
request with me, even if it's by e-mail or phone, I pause and pray with them at
that moment. If it's by e-mail I write
the prayer in the e-mail and send it back to them. I was drawn to this idea for two reasons. First, because I knew I wouldn't break my
promise to pray by forgetting. Second,
because the person hears the prayer and hopefully they are comforted and
encouraged by knowing and hearing the prayer lifted up on their behalf.
I wish I didn't forget. I wish that remembering to pray was always my first response, not just
my sometimes first response. I find
these little reminders help me to move closer to praying continually. If, like me, you sometimes forget to pray for
the things you want very much to remember to pray for, give these little
reminders a try. You can use something
you drive or walk by daily; a note on the 'frig, computer, or mirror; a sound;
anything that triggers your mind and heart to go before God in prayer
throughout the day can lead us to more and more consistently pray continually.
What has helped you to pray continually?
How do you remember to pray for specific requests?
